Love and Blood

9.

A few weeks had gone by since I had arrived at the castle and I had not seen Cassian since.

However, that didn't mean he wasn't keeping an eye on me. I'd been informed that because of my "good behavior" I was allowed to help the servants with their tasks.

Yay me.

The work wasn't all that hard, and it gave me a chance to memorize some parts of the castle. Others I hadn't even touched yet, as the grounds were massive.

I'd decided that if I was going to get out of this place, I needed to know my way around, so I began memorizing all of the routes I would take.

Most of the other servants barely spoke to me unless it was to bark orders or tell me what I had done wrong. I had managed to create a few tentative relationships though. The cook didn't seem to hate me, or at least he tolerated my presence, and my guards spoke to me on occasion now as well.

I particularly disliked working with Melissa, a heavier set vampire with a thick Russian accent. She didn't care about anything but her work, and she was stricter than all the others combined. I tried to stay out of her way, but I was always the first one she found when she needed assistance with some menial task. Even if that assistance meant she just watched as I worked and critiqued me every step of the way. From what I understood, she had been here longer than any of the other servants.

It was during one of these times that chaos and commotion befell the castle. Multiple servants rushed around, gathering random supplies and cleaning like their lives depended on it, before disappearing seemingly into thin air. It was a mad dash to finish their work and make themselves as scarce as possible.

I stopped a redheaded maid with big freckles on her pale face. She looked young, much younger than my twenty-two years, and it made my heart hurt to think about how old she must have been when she had been changed.

"What's going on?" I asked her.

She glanced up at me for only a second before shifting her gaze to the commotion around us.

Thundering footsteps moving at a hurried, uniformed pace could be heard coming our way.

"The King is back, and something has happened."

"Something happened? Like what?"

She looked at me with frightened red eyes and as she was about to say more, a mass of guards rounded the corner, marching our direction. They were intimidating to look at and they barely glanced at the servants who were scrambling to stay out of their way. With a squeak, the girl managed to zip back down the way she came and disappear around the corner.

Deciding it was best to follow her example, I tried the handle of the door I had been polishing, and to my luck, it was unlocked. I hurried into the room before I got trampled, but not before noticing the surprised look of one of the guards. He looked puzzled upon seeing me and he seemed familiar to me, but I couldn't remember where I had seen him before. I made a mental note to remember his face and ask my guards about it later.

I shut the door and leaned my back against the wood, feeling shaky and confused.

I still had no idea where I fit in in this world, but I knew I did not want to cause any more problems for myself if I ever wanted a chance at a peaceful life.

The marching continued on, sounding like a herd of animals, so I decided to look around the room since I had no idea how long I would be stuck in here.

It seemed to be a lavish bedroom of some sort, with a giant four poster bed sitting on one wall. A black lace canopy covered it and the sheets and duvet were a beautiful silver color. The walls were a soft grey and heavy wooden armoires and vanities littered the rest of the room.

The walls were decorated with paintings, but one portrait in particular caught my eye.

Cassian stood in the middle, looking regal and handsome, but there was a far away look in his eyes. On either side of him stood two of the most beautiful vampires I had ever seen. The woman shared Cassian's white blonde hair and her expression held a tinge of sorrow, while the man had a stern jaw, a cold glare, aimed at the woman, and dark brown tresses. They were all dressed in black clothing with the same rose pendant attached just below their collar bones.

I reached forward and touched the fabric of the canvas ever so slightly, entranced by these vampires. The world around me began to sway and it seemed as though I was being pulled somewhere else. I shut my eyes and fought off the dizziness that over came me, and when I opened them again, the room around me had a fuzzy, gray hue.

Frightened by my surroundings, I tried to call out for help but it sounded as if my voice was coming from under water.

Suddenly the door slammed open and the man from the painting came barging in with Cassian following closely behind him.

"Why didn't you tell me this, father?" Cassian hissed at the man with venom in his voice.

"Do not take that tone with me, boy," the man, his father, replied. His stare was just as cold as it was in the painting, but seeing it in person made the hairs on my body stand up. He was not a force to be reckoned with.

"Because of your mistakes, the entire royal kingdom is at stake!" Cassian screamed.

The man grabbed him by the throat and shoved him up against the wall.It happened so fast I barely had time to blink. I screamed when Cassian's body collided with it hard enough to make a crack in the molding.

"You will say nothing. Until the day you die and your insufferable soul travels to hell, you will say nothing. Do you understand me?"

The old king's red eyes burned black and Cassian's jaw dropped.

"I will tell no one," he murmured in a strange voice, almost as if he were under some sort of trance.

The room around me began to change once more. The spinning was back, but this time I kept my eyes open. I watched in awe as colors swirled around me, melting into one another until I was dumped back where I had been. I looked around. The room was back to normal color, there was no young Cassian, and his father was gone. All that was left in their place was the painting. Carefully touching the frame and avoiding the canvas, I moved it to the side and saw the crack I had witnessed just minutes ago, proving to me that it had not been some sort of dream.

What was happening?

What did I just do?

I searched the room, hoping there was something-anything- that could help me understand what was going on.

I threw clothes out of drawers, stripped the bed of it's sheets, and dug through every piece of furniture possible but it all turned up empty. It seemed this room hadn't been used in a long time. There were no scents attached to any of the items and they were stiff and cold.

Frustrated, I sat on the floor. There has to be information somewhere in this castle. The question now is how do I find it? The door burst open, slamming against the wall and making me jump and attempt to cover the mess I had made. One of my guards, Xavier, widened his eyes at the disaster around me.

"I can explain," I began, a slight panic building within me.

"Another time. You are ordered to come with me."

"What?"

Xavier grabbed me roughly by the arms and dragged me to my feet, pulling me through the door.

"Where are we going?" I asked. Usually Xavier was more talkative than my other guards, and that had led to me actually sort of enjoying his presence.

Xavier glanced at me but said nothing. His grip on my arm tightened and his steps became faster.

"Xavier, what's wrong?"

His eyes flashed with worry at my words, but still he remained silent.

He dragged me down hallways and up different flights of stairs. We were moving so fast that I didn't have any time to try and memorize where I was going.

Questions rolled around in my mind and worry clenched my stomach.

What had happened?

Why was I needed?

Had I done something wrong?

Xavier slowed his pace as we passed another guard. He nodded his head to them and when they were out of sight, he pushed me up against the wall.

"Winter, you must be careful. Answer all of his questions truthfully of there will be hell to pay."

I swallowed the lump in my throat and nodded, still not understanding what was happening.

Xavier sighed and released me before taking me further down the hall. We stopped before a large door with designs molded into the ancient wood.

"Xavier, where am I?"

He gave me a look of pity before opening the door.

"Here she is, you Highness."